Anglers fishing with me on the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had good action with trout and bluefish on deep grass flats of Sarasota Bay recently. In addition, we also caught scattered large Spanish mackerel and pompano in the same areas.
Fly angler Jeff Miller and his son, Reed, from St. Petersburg, FL, fished Sarasota Bay with me a couple of days on Dec. 19 and 20. They caught a variety of fish, including trout ladyfish and bluefish, on deep grass flats with Clouser flies and CAL jigs with shad tails and jerk worms. The action got better toward the end of the week. Fly angler Mark Eddy, from CO, fished with me on Friday morning and had similar action with Clouser flies fished on an intermediate sink tip fly line.
Sarasota winter resident, Tom Lamb, his daughter, Diane and granddaughter, Katherine, joined me for an afternoon trip on Friday. They had steady action with trout, bluefish, Spanish mackerel and flounder on CAL jigs with a variety of tails and DOA Deadly Combos. Katherine had the hot hand that day landing several quality fish including a large Spanish mackerel.
Longtime friends and customers, John Collins from CA, his brother-in-law Greg Weatherby and nephew, Peter Weatherby, both from RI, fished Sarasota Bay with me on Saturday. They had steady action most of the day on deep grass flats on the west side of Sarasota Bay with trout, bluefish and large Spanish mackerel caught on Clouser flies and CAL jigs with shad tails and jerk worms. We caught some of the largest Spanish mackerel that I have seen in Sarasota Bay in a quite a while. One of the fish weighed 5-pounds on a Boga Grip before being released and we estimated another, much larger one, at 7 or 8-pounds.
The action continued this week as David Farbman, from MI, and his dad, Burt Farbman, from Sarasota joined me for a trip in Sarasota Bay on Monday morning, Christmas Eve day. They had steady action near Bishop Point with trout, bluefish, Spanish mackerel and a pompano. Most fish were caught on CAL jigs with a variety of plastic tails and DOA Deadly Combos. I gave Dave some hands on, basic fly casting instruction and he was able to catch a couple of trout with a fly in addition to many that they both caught with spinning tackle.
I‘d like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a healthy and prosperous New Year! Hopefully you got to spend some quality time with family and friends. Negative low tides later this week are favorable for reds in potholes or tailing in backcountry areas of Gasparilla Sound. In addition, trout, bluefish, Spanish mackerel and more should be found on deep grass flats of Gasparilla Sound and Sarasota Bay.
Tight Lines,
Capt. Rick Grassett
Snook Fin-Addict Guide Service, Inc.
FFF Certified Fly Casting Instructor
(941) 923-7799
E-mail snookfin@aol.com
www.flyfishingflorida.net and www.snookfin-addict.com